Ivy had tears streaming down her face as she watched Dax and Karis locked in battle. If she left her position, her plan to take on the Grim Guild Master would fail, which would be worse than any damage Dax or Karis could do to each other. If only they knew who they were to everyone, they wouldn’t be trying so hard to kill each other. Or, at least, Ivy hoped that would be the case. Stell put her reassuring hand on Ivy. Ivy nodded slightly acknowledging Stell’s gesture. They both shifted their stances on the stiff grass and crunchy leaves beneath them. A dark plum of magic flooded over the meadow for a second time since the two of them had taken their place in the treeline.

  Stell glanced back at the decoy queen who seemed to be in a heated argument with the king next to her. The disguised queen was relishing her battle with a bear shifter. The orc was tangled with a few monkey shifters trying to keep them at bay. She turned her attention back to the decoy queen only to see the decoy queen drawing her ax in a battle stance. “Ivy, I think things are escalating with the queens,” she whispered.

  “What?” Ivy questioned, pulling herself away from Karis and Dax.

  That’s when everything started to happen at once. The decoy queen was fighting the king. A rush of magic evaporated from the meadow all the shifters, guards, and knights were falling to the ground. The disguised queen was panicked by the royals’ fighting and called to the orc for help. An elf warrior screamed as the one Ivy called Dax stabbed the wolf Ivy called Karis with his sword. The elf pulled the wolf into his arms frantically trying to bandage the wolf. Ivy nearly screamed herself when they heard an unexpected howl that rang clear through the air.

  “Is that…” Ivy mumbled through her tears. She focused hard on the trees across the meadow where the howl had originated. Ivy could barely make out a silver form when it fell to the brush. “Aura?” Her eyes grew wide in her realization. “Did Aura kill the Grim Guild Master?”

  Stell looked at Ivy in disbelief. “Is that possible? I thought she was Shadow’s prisoner.”

  “It’s possible,” Ivy stated. “Why else did the battle suddenly stop?”

  Stell surveyed the bloody meadow. All the living knights, guards, and shifters lay on the ground exhausted, not showing any signs of continuing the battle. Had the injured silver wolf ended the entire conflict on her own? Was their plan no longer needed? “What do we do now?”

  Ivy glanced at the meadow. One of her friends was dying in Jalen's arms while Enoch ran toward the battling royals. There was still a matter of confirming Shadow’s death and finding Aura. This was not her plan. Aura had unexpectedly acted on her own, and Karis was determined to finish her battle with Dax, leading to her fatal injury. She had to make a choice, or she could lose everyone still alive. She looked back at Stell for advice.

  “Ivy, I can heal one person. That is the extent of my magic. Karis is dying down there in the elf’s arms, and your friend, Aura, could be across the meadow with unknown injuries from defeating Shadow. I can only save on today. My magic has its limits. Plus, the royals are in a battle over there despite the end of the fighting in the meadow. We need to make a move now, or we could lose the queens, too.” Stell explained.

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  Ivy bit her lip in frustration. There was no easy answer, but to prevent a mass slaughter, Ivy would need Shadow’s body as evidence. Her gut twisted with guilt, but she had to focus on her goals. “We need to get Aura and Shadow first. It’s the only way to ensure a positive ending to this whole situation.

  Stell nodded. They both took off running toward the silver form that Ivy had seen fall just beyond the treeline on the other side of the meadow. Staying hidden in the trees, they rounded the meadow toward the location of the howl. Grim Guild members were scattered along the way toward Aura. They were quiet and lost without Shadow’s influence on them. When Ivy and Stell approached them, they immediately attacked them. Ivy wasted no time, bringing them all to their knees as she sped along with her giant knife, slicing into critical areas. The path was clear as Stell followed after Ivy. Stell made sure all of the Grim Guild members didn’t get up by sprinkling sleep dust onto their injured bodies.

  They stopped when they smelt wolf blood in a small clearing overlooking the meadow. Ivy looked over the clearing. She saw scorch marks and patches of ice from magic blasts. The trees were battered with scars from a duel. Her eyes landed on a gruesome sight. “Shadow?” She mumbled. Ivy and Stell both stared in disbelief. Shadow’s pink lifeless eyes stared off into the distance. His blood dripped down his body as his body sat in a pool of blood. There was no hood to hide his face. His pink hair was matted and sweaty. His rough blue skin was scarred and becoming pale. His whole black attire was in tatters from claws. The shoulder and throat were mangled from sharp canines. Was this Aura’s work?

  Stell looked past the dead guild master to see a silver wolf breathing shallowly. “Ivy, is that?” Stell pointed toward the wolf.

  “Aura.”

  Ivy snuck toward the injured wolf with Stell close behind her. They moved slowly in case there were any traps left from the battle or any enemies prowling around. Aura’s breath was ragged. Sunlight was fading from the sky as Ivy got closer to Aura. She looked down at her wounded friend. Aura’s stomach was bleeding, bruised, broken ribs in her chest, and ice holding her underbelly together. “What happened to you?” she whispered. Aura’s hips were dislocated, her tail fractured, wounds on her neck and head, and the list went on.

  Stell sat next to Ivy, examining the nearly dead wolf in front of her. “I can save her, Ivy, but this will be it. All that I can do today…”

  Tears pricked Ivy’s eyes. Why did Aura take Shadow on alone? Didn’t she know he could kill her? Ivy couldn’t decide if Aura was stupid or brave at this point… Two of Ivy’s friends were knocking on death’s door, and she could only ask for one to be saved. Karis or Aura? She needed to choose as both her friends were dying now. Karis could already be dead if they left Aura. Aura would die any moment now. Trying to save Karis would be more of a risk. “We have to save Aura. She is here, dying. Save her, Stell.”

  Stell nodded. “Little wolf, this will hurt, please don’t give up,” Stell whispered to Aura. Stell dug her fingers into Aura’s fur when warmth poured out of her fingertips. A glow enveloped Aura’s body from Stell’s magic. The ice melted, and Aura whimpered.

  Aura’s skin tingled with warmth. The chill of ice fell away as she groaned. Her wounds burned as they started to repair themselves. It was as if she was burning from the inside. Her blood boiled as it multiplied inside her body. Organs reattached themselves to her inside. Hips realigned and fractured bones fuse back together. Skin grew over the wounds while a needle pricking sensation fell over her body. Fur sprouted in all of the bald places along her body. Her body was on fire from the healing heat. Pain flooded every nerve in her body. Howls of pain erupted from her mouth. Why was she on fire?

  Stell pulled her hands away from Aura’s fur. Her job was done. The wolf was no longer dying. All of her energy had been drained from the magic she had used today. Between the polymorphic spells and healing magic, she would need a few days of rest, at least. Ivy gave her a grateful smile. Stell was glad to help her friend. She owed Ivy multiple life debts. This was just one case to lighten her debt to Ivy. Stell was happy to help this silver wolf not only for Ivy but because this silver wolf had killed Shadow.

  “Aura, if you can hear me, please wake up,” Ivy nearly begged her whimpering friend.

  Suddenly, Aura’s golden eyes were staring at Ivy when she felt an unexpected sadness fill her mind. Like a tether snapping and a connection breaking. Aura’s eyes widened as if she felt something similar in her mind. A cold realization washed over Ivy. There was a wolf down from her clan, but there was only one wolf close to dying a moment ago. “Karis…” Ivy sobbed.

  An exhausted Stell wrapped her hand around Ivy’s in comfort. Aura nudged Ivy with her nose. Ivy looked up at Aura’s sad questioning eyes. “Karis… she died…”